The Cellist of Sarajevo

The Cellist of Sarajevo

• Genre: Fiction; realistic/historical
• Originally Published: 2008
• Reading Level/Interest: College/Adult
• Structure/Length: 4 sections consisting of chapters named for characters; approx. 235 pages; approx. 5 hours, 23 minutes on audio
• Protagonist and Central Conflict: Based on a true story about Vedran Smailovic, a cellist who played in the war-torn city for 22 days during the 1990s siege of Sarajevo after witnessing 22 citizens killed standing in a bread line. It follows the cellist vis-á-vis three characters living in Sarajevo during the Bosnian War, including Kenan, a young man whose perilous daily task is to cross the city and fetch water for his family; Dragan, an older man afraid of dying, whose family has long since fled the city, and who must leave his house to work at a local bakery to eat; and “Arrow,” the young sniper who has been called upon to protect him from a hidden killer, and who begins to doubt her deadly missions.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: War violence; wartime struggle to survive

Steven Galloway, Author

• Bio: Born in 1975 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; studied and later taught writing at the University of British Columbia, where he became a tenured professor and chaired the creative writing program; was fired in 2016 for allegations of sexual misconduct and maltreatment of students, which several fellow Canadian authors including Margaret Atwood protested, claiming lack of due process; reportedly later admitted to having an affair with a student but eventually sued her for defamation, alleging that her sexual assault claims were false
• Other Works: The Confabulist (2015); Ascension (2003); Finnie Walsh (2000)
• Awards: George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature, Evergreen Award, Borders Original Voices Award

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• The Effects of War
• The Redemptive Power of Art
• The Importance of Catharsis

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Develop an understanding of the cultural and historical context of the Siege of Sarajevo that incites the novel’s conflict.
• Analyze paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of The Effects of War, The Redemptive Power of Art, and The Importance of Catharsis.
• Plan and construct visual media to convey art that inspires change based on details from the novel.
• Analyze and evaluate the author’s purpose and character details to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding the use of color, the purpose of light and dark, and other topics.